


For a Good Reason

by SpookyNoodle



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, mindreading
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-26
Updated: 2017-11-26
Packaged: 2019-02-06 22:41:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12827652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpookyNoodle/pseuds/SpookyNoodle
Summary: Jaune wakes up with a strange new power, one that could change things forever, but...why is Blake fighting with her team?





	1. This HAS to be Cheating

**Author's Note:**

  * For [FleeingReality](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FleeingReality/gifts).



> A commission for FleeingReality, with the conditions of Knightshade, and mindreading.

' _He's so adorable when he's sleeping.'_

The bed was warm and soft, frustratingly so. Well, it wasn't  _that_ frustrating. It just meant that it would suck to get out of it. Jaune grabbed at a twist of comforter and pulled it to his chest.

' _This boy is going to be the death of me._   _Look at him! He's like a big blonde puppy. And he's not even awake yet!'_

His brow crinkled, and he turned over.

' _Oh no, is he having a bad dream? What are you supposed to do when people have bad dreams? Wake them, not wake them? Or is that sleepwalking?'_

What the hell? Pyrrha's voice sounded so odd. Echoey.

' _Pyrrha, focus! You have to, um…Tuck him in? No, that sounds silly. Just…pet his hair. Yes. Make sure he's comfortable, and the dream will sort itself out.'_

A smooth, soft, and slightly cool hand brushed through his hair, and he felt the springs of the bed shift as a weight settled next to him.

' _It's so soft. I feel like I could touch him for days. No, that sounds creepy…'_

Jaune's brow creased further, and as he sat up, the hand retracted as if it had been burned.

He hadn't realized there was a weight on his bed until it wasn't there anymore, and the creaking from nearby told him that it was…

"Pyrrha?"

"Good morning, Jaune", she looked up noncommittally, pulling her stockings over her feet.

' _I hope he didn't catch me "copping a feel", as Yang puts it. Does it count if you're just…caressing a person's gorgeous, wonderfully soft hair?'_

He rubbed at his eyes and then at his hair. ' _I guess it's pretty soft, but…'_

' _Why hasn't he said anything? Jaune isn't usually_ this  _dead in the mornings.'_

"I'm just not a morning person," he protested.

Pyrrha chuckled softly, like the chiming of a bell in the wind. "I know that, Jaune. I didn't expect you to be out and about immediately."

She sounded…different. Not different from how she normally sounded, but different from how she sounded a few seconds ago.

Was he still dreaming? Pyrrha wasn't normally this talkative, or…echo-y.

"Today is Thursday, so classes don't start for another forty-five minutes." Ren spoke as he stepped out of the bathroom, somehow talking intelligibly past a toothbrush. Jaune's gaze shifted from Pyrrha to him, and then…

' _Where's Nora? Did she already go to breakfast? Did she remember to wear her socks? Is she in her uniform or combat dress? Where is she?'_

"Bwwuuuuuhhhhhhh…Ren…"

' _Nora!'_

Ren practically ran to his partner's bed, which was to say, he walked unusually fast, before slowing down and trying not to look too concerned.

' _Oh god, is she injured? She's dying. This is the last I'll ever see her!'_

Ren pulled at an enormous pile of pink comforters, to reveal one Nora Valkyrie, snot drooling from one nostril and bags under her eyes.

"Reeeeeen…I think I'm thick…" She coughed, and her whole body jumped on the bed.

"You're what?"

"I'm thick!"

"You're sick…"

' _Oh god. Chicken noodle soup, four varieties of tea, every pancake I can make. I'll bring a specialist in from Vale and-'_

"Don't worry." Nora smiled and clasped his hand. "I just need a wittle bit of west, is'all…."

Jaune looked at Nora.

' _He always worries so much. He probably wanted to take me to the hospital or something.'_

"I wasn't too worried. I just don't want you to get behind on school work."

Liar.

' _Liar. Not that I mind.'_

Well said, Nora's voice in his head.

Wait a minute… Looking at Ren.

' _I'll bring her breakfast, and take two sets of notes, and-'_

Then to Nora…

' _Oooooh, I wonder if I can get him to tuck me back in?'_

And Pyrrha…

' _What's wrong with Jaune? He's just staring. Is he sick? Should I take him to the hospital. I should take his temperature. I wonder if I can get away with doing the forehead thing?'_

The forehead thing? What-

Pyrrha stood up, and stepped toward him, with purpose in her emerald eyes.

"Nah, that's okay! I'm not sick, or anything!" Pyrrha didn't need to embarrass herself by having contact like that with a bozo like him.

Her face fell. ' _Maybe next time…'_

Jaune frowned, and rubbed his hands through his hair, scratching at his scalp. Nothing was making sense. This couldn't make sense if it was given a guidebook on how to make sense, including tips on where to buy materials to make your sense out of.

He could… _what?_  He could read minds. But that was insane, people didn't  _have_ semblances like that.

This was…a massive invasion of privacy. The implications made him  _very_ uneasy. No one could keep secrets from him. No one could lie. If he was smart about what he said, he could convince anyone of almost anything.

' _I could become such a monster.'_

He could…make people love him. He could always know just what to say to impress someone, always have the answer in class. He could be smart, popular, sexy, but… None of it would really mean anything. It would be like cheating in a video game, the 'winning' wouldn't satisfying, because it wouldn't be hard. And then again…was that kind of 'winning' what he really wanted?

Should he tell someone?

This was all so insane. If he  _did_ tell someone, would they ever trust him, knowing that everything they thought or felt, the things they (sometimes rightly) wanted to hide from him; knowing that he would always  _know?_

He looked up at Ren, who was somehow accomplishing the very difficult task of fussing over Nora while looking like he wasn't really worried.

' _How did this even happen? Has it been cold outside? No, it's July. Does Nora have allergies? How could we not have noticed in the four months we've been here, let alone the last ten years? Okay, it's not a cold, it's not allergies-'_

Jaune shifted his gaze, looking at Ren's bed, which was predictably, made. He'd probably washed all his sheets and pillowcase when he first woke up. As he stared at the bed, he heard…nothing. No voices in his head.

He looked at Nora. ' _Mmmmm, I like his hands on me, even if it's just propping me up for more pillows. I should be sick more oft-'_

And back to Ren's bed. Silence. Okay. He had to look at someone. Not make eye contact, necessarily, but focus on them. He looked at Pyrrha, who was sliding on her heeled shoes, but he closed his eyes. ' _Should we go over shield-based combat tonight? Gods above, what came after the introduction to ambidexterity? Maybe we should just drill that more…?'_

He turned his head, looking to where he expected Ren's bed to be. Nothing.

He shook his head and scratched at his head again. Okay, not concentration then. That was  _not_ consistent, and  _very_ confusing.

A door slammed in the hallway, before bursting open again. Loud footfalls were drowned out by louder shouting.

"We're not done talking about this!"

"I think we are!"

"Blake, look at yourself, you're a mess!"

"How flattering of you!"

"Don't try and turn this on me, you're not going to class!"

"No, I'm not!"

"Wait, that worked? You'll come back and go back to be-?"

"Because I'm going to the library!  _I_ care about what's happening in the outside world!  _I_ care about saving people!"

There was a long pause and the fading of footsteps before he heard infuriated screaming and something hitting the wall. Dust drifted down from the ceiling.

Everyone looked at the door…then looked at Jaune. He sighed, pulling the comforter away and padding to the door, pulling it open to reveal one of his recurring nightmares.

Yang Xiao Long stepped down the hallway like some terrifying beast of ancient myth, her eyes red, and aura licking at the ceiling.

"What do you want, Pumpkin Pete!?"

' _How could Blake seriously think something like that?! Does she seriously think so lowly of everyone around her?! Oh, just because we're not freaking killing ourselves obviously means we just don't care about innocent people getting hurt! What about you, moron?_ You're  _getting hurt and_ we  _care about you!'_

"Well?! Spit it out! What's wrong with you?!"

Jaune flinched away, back bumping into the door, which had mysteriously closed behind him. Traitors.

"Yang, what-? What's going on? How can we help?"

"Doesn't matter." ' _We don't need your help. We're not weak or stupid or…whatever! We can handle this on our own.'_

"Yang, it's not like that. We just want-"

"Like what, hunh?!" ' _You think I can't do this!? You think I'm not strong enough, not smart enough to fix things with my own damn partner!?'_

"Yang, you're not dumb or anything, but Blake seems to be pretty…uh…"

' _Stupid, headstrong, idiot, self-centered-'_

"Self-centered, right now."

"Exactly! She's being so-! So-!" Yang looked for a moment like she might actually combust. "So stupid!"

Jaune nodded.

' _I've tried everything, but she won't even talk to me.'_ Yang's whole body seemed to slump, and it was all Jaune could do not to step forward and hug her. ' _I'm so tired of being shut out.'_

"Yang, don't shut me out." This felt like cheating. This  _had_ to be cheating, in some way or another. "If Blake's being so dumb, it sounds like having more friends trying to help her wouldn't hurt, right?"

Yang glared at him, before relaxing again and hugging her arms around her chest. "I guess…"

Jaune thought back to their shouted conversation, trying to piece together some of what might be happening. "She's not sleeping, right?"

Yang nodded numbly. "She's going crazy over this White Fang stuff again."

He took a cautious step closer, and when Yang didn't react, he closed the distance, and set a hand on her shoulder. She looked surprised, but after a moment, she unclenched her arms, turned into him, and rested her palms on his back, giving him a small squeeze.

"You give good hugs."

Jaune shrugged. "Thanks. So what exactly is she doing?"

Yang turned her face down and spoke into his onesie, "I'm not really sure, I can't get a lot out of her. Based on what she said though, she seems really upset that the White Fang is working with Torchwick. She can't wrap her head around it. So she's been going over news reports, but that's not exactly the best place to find details, so…I don't know what she's doing now."

Jaune hummed, and Yang felt the vibrations reverberate in her chest. "Are you okay if I try to talk to her?" She snorted and pulled away, thumping a fist against his chest.

"And what are you gonna do, lady-killer? Serenade the secrets outta her?"

Jaune reached up and clasped her hand holding it for a moment. "I'm gonna do my best."

She rolled her eyes, and pulled her hand away, cracking open her door to step back inside. "You're a dork."

Jaune just sighed and stepped back inside, preparing to change for his day of classes.

* * *

Jaune Arc sat at the lunch table, surrounded by his group of friends, sans one quiet, dark-haired girl. Yang kept looking at him, and when he looked back, he suddenly knew why.

' _I don't know whether I'm glad that he's given up, or mad that he went back on a promise…which he technically didn't make. He just asked if it was okay with me to talk to Blake. I didn't really answer him, did I…? And I can't exactly tell him_ now _. That would be weird.'_

Jaune shook his head, and a T-rex chicken nugget was torn into little pieces in his nervous hands.

He could read minds, which was like moral quicksand, and he didn't have a rope.

He wouldn't be a bad person if he used this power to help Blake, right? She was suffering, her team was suffering. If Jaune had the power to fix it, and didn't do anything, then…wasn't  _that_ itself, wrong?

Jaune tossed down the mashed nugget and placed his head in his hands, before letting out a frustrated little growl. Great, now he had bread crumbs in his hair.

Blake was hurting her team and herself. Jaune, with this new power, could help. Those were the barest of bare bones facts.

Jaune stood up. "I, uh…I'll seeya guys later." Their questions, concerns, and goodbyes went unnoticed and he left his tray and struggled with this moral quandary.

* * *

Blake, predictably enough, was in the library. She sat at a computer terminal, the pale green light washing over her face. Yang had been right, she looked terrible.

Her eyes looked hollow, with dark purple bags. Her hair was tangled and ratty, sticking up in odd places, and she looked like she hadn't showered, slept, or eaten in days.

' _Witnesses claim that several armed, young men in dark outfits, all with faunus traits, rushed into the store, holding guns to the heads of each of the victims. Accounts differ on the number of attac-'_

She didn't look up at him as he pulled a chair next to her. She didn't respond when he sat. She didn't seem to notice when he coughed to try and get her attention. He reached out and touched her shoulder.

Something had to have happened for him to end up on the floor. He looked up, and there Blake sat, typing at the touchscreen keys. Next to her was an overturned chair. Had she just…? She was  _fast._

"Blake."

"Busy."

He sighed, rubbing at his head. "Blake, we need to talk."

"What would  _we_ have to talk about?" Ouch. That stung. He knew the two of them hadn't talked a lot, but they were still friends…of a sort.

He scowled and stood up, righting the chair, and facing her. It sounded like she was still reading the article. ' _-thorities quickly arrived on the scene, though the perpetrators escaped with most of the dust in the shop.'_

"Blake."

"Go away."

"No."

She scowled. ' _Idiot. Doesn't have much of a sense of self preservation.'_

He gulped. As she'd already proven, Blake could kick his ass. She'd thrown him out of his chair faster than he could see, and she'd gone days without sleep. Even as exhausted as she was, Jaune couldn't  _make_ her do anything, not with how uncoordinated he was.

"Blake…why are you doing this?" That should give him some extra insight, right? He looked at her, doing his best not to make it  _seem_ like he was staring.

' _The White Fang are my responsibility. I left them when my already twisted morals couldn't take anymore, like a rat from a sinking ship. I_ have  _to be the one to fix this, if only to clear my conscience. They aren't even the White Fang anymore, just a bunch of thugs Roman Torchwick is using to carry out his heists. I have to know why. I have to stop it. I have to…'_

"Why does it matter to you?" Jaune had been so distracted by her thoughts that he almost didn't hear her real voice.

He turned away, facing out toward the empty library. Few enough people studied during lunch that they were alone. "Because you're my friend."

She snorted, and Jaune wasn't happy to notice that it was the first reaction he'd gotten from her. At least, one that wasn't violent. "Jaune, this is the first time we've done anything more than greet each other. I sincerely doubt that you care anything for my problems."

He winced. Had they really been so distant? He'd always thought that he was friendly, tried to get to know people.

"Okay fine, I don't care about your problems." She smirked, confident in her pessimistic assumptions, and she began to type something, her fingers fast across the glass panel. "But I care about Ruby." The tapping paused.

' _Bastard.'_

"Guilt won't work on me." Her expression hardened, and her voice continued in an entirely different setting, ' _I promised my team. When I ran away, I promised them that I would come to them, that my problems were their problems, that we helped and supported each other.'_

"That's what teams are for."

"What?" Blake actually looked at him this time, and Jaune was not pleased to carry the weight of her glare.

"Nothing."

"No, you said something."

"Blake, I want to help your team, and I want to help you. Is there anything so wrong with that?"

She snorted and looked back to the computer, fingers tapping once again on the glass, long-since smudged with the oils of a thousand other fingers. "So you just have a bleeding heart. You want everyone to get over their nasty problems, so they can all be sunshine-y, happy friends again." Her sarcasm was biting, and her thoughts weren't any more charitable. ' _He's worse than Ruby.'_

"Blake, if you can help someone who needs it, isn't it your responsibility to do it?"

Her fingers stopped again, but for once, her mind was just as quiet. And then, he heard a voice from Blake's mind, but it wasn't hers. It was a boy's voice, a young man's, just a little deeper than Jaune's own.

' _Power is responsibility, Blake. That's something the humans never understood. Those with power have a responsibility to protect those who don't.'_

Without saying anything, Blake continued her tapping, but the pace was slower. "And what makes you think you can help me?"

"I'm not really sure. But I know what guilt feels like."

"Who says I'm guilty of anything?" The implied accusation was somehow soft, as if she knew just how guilty she truly was.

"You do."

She looked at him sharply, ' _What the hell does he know?'_

"Blake, I've been talking with your team, and based on what you've been doing, it feels like…you're punishing yourself."

"For what?"

She was doing research on the White Fang, she was a faunus, and she was an incredible fighter. It wasn't hard to guess.

"For the White Fang."

For the third time in as many minutes, Blake's fingers went still on the keyboard, and her fingers curled into balled fists. "Who told you that?"

"Blake, you're a faunus, and you're crazy strong."

"Velvet's both of those!"

"Plus, I can see your screen."

"Oh…"

"Blake, I don't know what you did, or what you  _thought_ you did, but…the White Fang isn't your responsibility."

"It is!" She turned and shouted at him, the echo of her voice dying among the papered shelves. "It's all my fault!"

Her hands rose and covered her face, and Jaune was surprised to see tears trail down her wrists.

Jaune looked around, before glancing down at Blake, panicked. What was he supposed to do? The last time he touched Blake he ended up on the floor, and she had been right: they weren't exactly super close.

As he looked down at her, he saw her misery. ' _If I was still there, I'd know how to help them, guide them. I was chief of intelligence, I had power. "Power is responsibility, Blake." And I abandoned my duties for what? For some spoiled kids too bored to do the right thing!? Because of my own conscience!? What about them?! Did any of my subordinates feel easier about taking lives?!'_

Jaune blanched. She'd been  _in_ the White Fang? Apparently someone important, too.

He wanted to reach out, do something to end this feeling of powerlessness, but he wasn't sure if it would do more harm to Blake than good.

"Blake, I-" God, where was he even supposed to start. "Sometimes…sometimes things get too big for us."

Blake sniffled and looked up at him. "What?"

"When you were in the White Fang, did you ever do stuff on your own?"

"Sometimes, yes, when the mission called for it."

"Yeah, but something like  _this_? You would've had people, right? Someone to help you go over all the stuff you found out, to talk with you, support you, help decide what to do next. There's always  _someone._ "

"Yes…" She didn't continue, verbally, anyway. ' _But this isn't like that. Yang and the rest won't help me and_ something  _has to be done. This is too important to just sit back and let the police handle it.''_

"Blake…do you remember when you went away for that weekend?" She nodded, and sniffled again, wiping tears away from her face. "At the end, your team found you, and they talked to you. You guys got closer, but that goes two ways. They trust you, and you trust them. Do you seriously think they're just…ignoring the White Fang?"

Blake stared past him, and Jaune didn't think he'd ever seen someone look so tired. "They love you, Blake. And what you're putting yourself through, it's- they want to help, but you won't let them in. They don't deserve to be hurt."

She'd begun to wipe at her eyes, but she froze, and her face turned ashen. ' _They didn't deserve to die!'_

' _And we didn't deserve a shit island, to be ostracized.'_

' _Adam! What's the point in justice if everyone is dead by the time we get there!?'_

Okay…She knew someone, Adam, who'd gone too far. He could…this was  _so_ cheating…

"Have you ever done something, because you thought it was right, but it just ended up hurting people?"

She stared at him, and despite the tears beneath her cheeks, Jaune couldn't help but feel a little intimated.

' _What about the crew members?'_

' _What about them?'_

'… _goodbye.'_

She blinked, once, twice, and looked away, glancing around their empty corner of library. And then, she looked down at her shaking hands.

"It's just me…"

"It's never  _just_ you, Blake. With everything you're putting yourself through…it's eating your team up."

She shifted uncomfortably, and closed her hands into fists.

"But…I can't just…let this go. I can't stop. Torchwick and the White Fang, they're moving forward, and I can't let them-"

"Blake." Despite his better judgement, Jaune reached forward, and clasped Blake's hands in his own. When his body was still intact the next second, he let out an uneasy breath, and continued, "You don't have to stop. Just…slow down…Lean on your team. You can rely on each other. I'm sure if you took better care of yourself, and just… _trusted_ them…that they'll help."

Blake sighed as he did, and her breath was just as shaky as his own had been a moment ago. She pulled her hands away, and wiped at her face. "I…you're right. I'm sorry."

He chuckled, "You don't need to say that to me."

She nodded, hurriedly, and sniffled a final time as she stood. "I'll go talk to them."

Jaune stood as well, and shrugged. "Take care of them Blake. You know how silly Ruby is, always getting into trouble." She laughed shakily before striding past him and out to the double doors. As she left though, she might have moved her hand in something resembling a wave. Jaune couldn't be sure.

* * *

Jaune panted heavily, and his whole body ached from exhaustion. Pyrrha was…so much better than him. He winced as a step pulled one muscle or another. God, he was sore. The conversation with Blake earlier had suffused him with a weird, giddy energy.

He'd done something special.  _He'd_ helped someone in a way that no one else could. Others may be smarter, or stronger, or faster, but  _no one_ could have done what he'd done today.

As he walked down the hallway to his dorm, he couldn't help but feel…proud. Proud of himself. It was…unfamiliar. But incredible. He would give almost anything to feel like this all the time.

The door on his left opened, and a blur of blonde and orange hurtled into him. Two voices cried out as he fell to the floor, but his attacker remained wrapped around him.

"Thank you." Yang whispered, and it almost sounded like she was crying. She squeezed him and his ribs creaked in protest.

"Ouch!"

She ignored him, and continued whispering into his chest, "I don't know what you did, or what you said. I didn't think you could do it, but…she came back, and…we all talked. I just- Thank you."

Now that she wasn't trying to snap him in half, he returned the hug, giving her a soft squeeze. "You are super welcome."

She snorted and clambered up, hoisting him to his feet. "You're still a dork."

He shoved her, "Hey, this dork just got you back your partner."

Her smile faded from something teasing to something altogether more sincere, and she stepped forward, gently hugging him again. "I know. You still give good hugs."

"I've been told."

She chuckled, and released him, opening the door to her dorm before glancing back and waving slightly. "Good night, Jaune."

"Yeah, same. I mean-uh...good night."

She smirked and closed the door.

* * *

Jaune was not a person for fancy dress. Even for dances. He tugged at his collar. Pyrrha definitely tied this too tight.

It had been five or six days since his talk with Blake, and from what he heard, RWBY was tighter than ever. They'd apparently gone out into Vale and fought a giant wolf robot, or something. Again, the warm, pleased feeling tingled in his body, and he almost wanted to laugh from how good it felt.

The dance was tonight, and while things hadn't worked out with Weiss, that seemed a lot less important than it had a while ago. He was here for his team, for his friends, a chance to unwind before their missions tomo-

"Jaune?"

He stopped, just outside the door to the gym. Lights flashed from underneath, and something loud reverberated in his chest. But it wasn't the music that had caught his attention.

He turned slowly, off to the side, and there was- "Uh…hi, Blake."

She smiled at him, and Jaune didn't mind noticing that she was  _gorgeous._  The circles under her eyes were long gone, her hair was sleek and gently wavy, but it was so much more. The way she held herself, her small smile, the way her hands were completely still instead of shaking. Blake was  _well_.

"I'd hoped to talk to you."

"Uh…right." God, could he say anything more stupid? "Ummm…what did you…want to talk to me about?" He was a moron.

"I wanted to thank you, I- For helping me, earlier."

"You're…uh- you're welcome." Why didn't he say 'uh' a few more times, since he obviously liked the word so much?

Blake suddenly looked nervous, and she glanced around, as if to see if someone was watching them, before stepping close and-

She smelled like…violets, and a little of lavender. Warm arms wrapped around his chest, and she pressed her cheek against him, looking at the door as if waiting for someone to come through.

Just as he finally processed what was happening, she was gone, turning away, stopping just a few feet from him. "You never tell anyone that happened."

"…okay?"

She turned to him one more time, then back to the door, then halfway. "I'd like…I'd like a dance."

What?

"If that's not too much trouble."

"No, no, uh…I'd love to." Her smile was miniscule, and in the dark of the hallway he almost missed it, but it was definitely there.

"Good. I'm glad."

She turned away, and pulled the door open, flooding the hall with music and lights and a hazing smoke.

Blake coughed and swatted at the air, before gesturing to Jaune.

"Come on!" She had to shout over the music, "don't let me suffer alone!"

He smiled, and after taking the door from her and letting her move inside, he stepped after her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So, as the initial author's notes says, this is a commission. Since this guy was a good friend, I'm giving him a slightly discounted price.
> 
> You should be happy to note: he wants to commission a sequel, so we can't to see Jaune and Blake's actual progression to romance!
> 
> I have to admit: I was really unhappy with the beginning. I wrote up to about Jaune first sitting next to Blake, and I was ready to scrap the whole thing and start over, cause it was such garbage. Got some encouragement from some friends, did some re-organization, and persevered, and now you have...whatever this is.
> 
> If you're interested in commissioning me, my prices are 5 cents for every 3 words, and you can PM to discuss details.
> 
> Cheers.


	2. Why do we Fall, Blake?

"Whooo! Go Yang!" Jaune fell back into his chair, looking left and right at the enormous crowd that surrounded him, the seats of Amity Colosseum filled with an unimaginable number of people. His team on one side, and RWBY on the other. He caught Blake's eye beside him, and he grinned at her, her reply much smaller, but just as bright.

This was going to be incredible. Yang Xiao Long was going to be fighting in the finals of  _the_ Vytal Festival Tournament. His  _friend_ ; someone he knew! The idea seemed so unfathomable, so surreal to him. Someone he personally knew and cared for was going to be on international TV, in front of millions of people. He never imagined that his life would be so… _big!_

It had been a month since the dance, when he'd talked to Blake. The Vytal tournament had started what felt like hours ago, and yet it was already the finals, the last fights before all the smiling, cheerful people would return to their homes for the next two years.

He cautiously looked at Blake again, to see her staring at her partner, down in the arena. He and Blake were…friends? Right? Yeah, they were friends. She talked with him as least as much as Ruby, and certainly more than Sun. That meant they had to be friends, right? When the group was all together, she would sometimes sit next to him. If the main event was interesting enough, she sometimes put down her book and watched, occasionally leaning close to him to whisper some dry, sarcastic remark.

One time, he'd fallen asleep in the library, and woke to find her sitting next to him, in the next armchair. "I've never seen you reading anything larger than a comic, willingly anyway," she'd said, and she had that crooked little smirk on her face. When he'd said that he hadn't, she'd made him lie back in his chair, opened the book in her hands, and had read aloud to him. A tale of two souls, a dark and light half that fought for dominance. He  _had_ eventually fallen asleep again, but with the way Blake told the story, her voice so much more animated than usual, he couldn't help but feel…captured, by the little hardback book.

Blake nudged his arm in the present, and he jerked out of his daydreaming. "Look," she whispered quietly, somehow managing to reach him despite the deafening crowd. The second wheel had finally stopped spinning, and they now knew Yang's opponent: Mercury Black.

Yang was talking with him, a guy Jaune vaguely remembered from the team that sometimes hung out with RWBY. The two were smiling- well,  _she_ was smiling and cracking jokes, while he just smirked at her, his lips barely moving sometimes to reply.

"What's up with him?" He leaned toward Blake and didn't-quite-whisper.

"Emerald has always said he's pretty arrogant. He's probably not taking the fight seriously." Blake shrugged.

"The  _finals_ of the  _Vytal Festival Tournament_?" Jaune was incredulous.

"Emerald also said he wasn't very smart." Blake shrugged again, and her mouth twitched in a small smile. "But I think she might be biased. She doesn't like him very much."

Jaune shook his head, and leaned against one side of the stadium seat. How could someone their age not be in awe of something like this? The eyes of the world were on them, and he was just sneering at Yang, not giving her, or the fight, the respect it deserved. While Jaune may have never met the guy, he immediately disliked him. Jaune had worked too hard for his place here, scrabbling his way from a fraudulent cheat into someone on par with (mostly) anyone in his year. He couldn't like someone who looked down on everything that represented.

After the two combatants had traded a few words, they fell into ready poses, Professor Port counted down and, "FIGHT!"

Jaune's eyes grew wider as the fight began. It was…beautiful. The way they moved, it was like a dance, graceful and terrible, flowing through forms he couldn't even begin to understand before changing course in sharp, jagged hits, every line either moving into the next, or breaking off and zigzagging from a blow or block. Jaune would have to rephrase his status: he wasn't anywhere  _close_ to the kind of combat that these guys were doing.

A thought occurred to him, and unlike many that he'd heard over the past month, this one was his own. What if he peered into Yang's mind? His powers hadn't changed much the last few weeks, but he could hear thoughts from a lot farther away, and with a bit more clarity. It was like, the  _best_ way to take notes! Jaune could look right inside Yang's head, look at her thoughts as she went through the fight, maybe pick up some tips, and learn some ways to get better.

' _Watch his legs, step into his guard, can't exactly bend his legs in half, come from right, grab, throw off balance-'_ Her thoughts were short, rapid, and it made sense; she couldn't exactly be writing poetry in the middle of a fight. She just needed to think ahead one or two short steps, and then counter. Yang was too focused on the dance.

And like every dance, this one came to an end. There'd been a few close calls, Mercury almost fell off the platform one time, but Yang had emerged victorious, Mercury's aura levels totally gone. Yang said a few words to Mercury, but he was too far away to hear, before she turned around and started to walk away.

' _There's not going to be a next time, blonde…'_

Wait…that wasn't Yang's voice. That didn't sound anything like her thoughts. Jaune's own thoughts were interrupted, because, for the first time, he  _saw_ something.

He was standing in the arena, the crowds cheering around him. He heard something, a rushing noise, and he turned to see- Mercury was leaping right for him, leg extended in what would be a deadly kick!  _'What is he doing?!'_  It was Yang's familiar voice in his head, and he jumped as Mercury flew at him and-

He jerked in his seat, breathing heavily, gasping for breath. It felt like he could feel Mercury's foot in his chest. The booing shook him from his own thoughts. Booing, jeers, outraged cries. He looked to Blake beside him, and she looked like she might snap the arms of her chair at any second. She was tense, breathing heavily, and he thought he heard her murmur something. "Just like him. She's just like him…"

Just like who? Adam? Jaune knew from Blake's memories that Yang and Adam were  _nothing_ alike. What was going on?

"Yang Xiao Long! Stand down!"

He looked into the amphitheater to see Yang, surrounded by Atlas officers, all with weapons trained on him.

"What!? Why?" Yang looked just as confused as he felt. He looked beside her to see Mercury, lying on the ground and clutching his leg.

"Why'd she do it? Why did she attack me?!"

What?! That was ridiculous, he had attacked her, she was just defending herself. The booing got worse, and Jaune looked around, confused. "What are they doing?" Every face around him was pointed up, and he followed their gazes to…the screen.

It showed Yang walk past Mercury, who was extending a hand to her. What? That didn't make any sense, he had been farther awa- The Yang on the screen turned around and shot at Mercury, the foreign student crumpling and clutching his leg.

"What?!" Jaune couldn't believe it. He stared in disbelief at the cowardly, dishonest pixels.

That's not what happened…that's-

"That's not what happened!" Jaune shouted at a man much more powerful than he, and Ironwood pursed his lips with cryogenic patience.

"Mister Arc, well I understand that your friend's actions must be upsetting to you, I-"

Jaune interrupted him,  _again._ "But she didn't do it! I mean, she kinda did, but Mercury did it!"

Ironwood's brow furrowed, like storm clouds on the verge of thunder. "If you're trying to confuse me in an attempt to reverse the decision that the security council came to, then-"

"But she's innocent!" Jaune gestured with his arms wildly, his eyes wide as they bore into the general's own.

Ironwood looked like he might actually hit him. "And what proof do you have?!" The general's breath came out in great heaving pants, and Jaune thought he might actually see his skin getting paler. "Jaune, I understand you want to help your friend, but you haven't told me any evidence that even suggests  _you_ believe what you're saying."

Jaune grit his teeth at the use of his first name. Teachers never did that unless rules had suddenly come secondary to people, and Jaune was forced to realize that his friend was on the wrong side of those rules.

Ironwood sighed and rubbed at his face, his palm carrying the frown and furrowed brow away. He suddenly looked very old, and very tired. "You mean well, I know. But as far as I can see, you can't prove her innocence, you can't even properly explain why you think Yang might have acted out of character. Let me tell you what I see: I saw a girl, with a history for brazen violence, and a reputation of a short temper. I saw her jittery on hormones and bloodlust, and I saw her turn around and attack a student, probably out of surprise or shock."

He sighed again, and his whole body, normally so rigid and upright, seemed to sag under the weight of his problems. "I don't think Yang is a bad person, Jaune. But she's unpredictable, and lacks self-control. In all honesty, her disqualification is to satisfy the people, not myself. If I allowed her to compete, there might actually be riots, and god knows how long it's been since we've had one of those. The grimm are restless enough as it is."

"But…" What was Jaune supposed to say? If he could prove that something had happened to Yang, something had  _made_ her lash out, how would that effect any of the spectators? The world had already come to a decision as to what Yang did and why she did it. "You could release a statement, that there was tampering, that-"

"What tampering?" Jaune's mouth clicked shut as Ironwood was finally the one to interrupt him. "Nothing suggests that Miss Xiao Long's outburst was anything more or less than combat shakes. Do you have any evidence to suggest otherwise?" Ironwood's gaze was hard, and Jaune was hard pressed to meet his eyes. "Jaune, if you've seen something that is even remotely suspicious, if it's founded at all, I'll look into it."

Jaune thought back to what he'd seen, of Mercury's leg extended towards him in a deadly kick, of standing in the arena while sitting in the stands. How could he possibly explain what he saw?  _'Oh, incidentally, I can read minds, I know that you and the headmaster are hiding something under the school, and that there's someone who can make people see things that aren't there.'_

Yeah. That'd go over  _great_. If they didn't believe him, he'd be kicked out of Beacon for mental instability, and if they did, he'd be locked up as a security risk. And neither of those options would help Yang.

He felt like scum for shaking his head. He felt like dirt for mumbling out, "No sir. It just didn't seem much like Yang to do that." And he hated Ironwood's patient and tired smile.

"I completely understand. If that's all, I have a press conference I need to get to." Jaune nodded numbly and stepped aside as Ironwood strode past him and down the hall, his back straightening up. Can't show the world how tired you are, he supposed.

Jaune was the worst. He'd had something, he knew Yang was innocent, knew that  _something_ had happened to make her act in self-defense, and he couldn't say anything. No, that wasn't it; he  _wouldn't_ say anything. He was too scared of what might happen to himself, of being locked up or expelled, when he had information that could've helped her. Not for the first time in his life, Jaune felt like such a coward.

He shambled to his dorm, feet as heavy as his heart as they dragged along the carpet. He was approaching his dorm, eager to just fall asleep and escape from his guilt. He wasn't sure he could look Yang in the face, even if she never would know why.

RWBY's dorm opened, and Blake, Weiss, and Ruby quietly stepped out, just as his own door opened and his team peered from inside. "How is she?" He asked, more on instinct. Maybe if she was feeling better, if she was taking it well, he wouldn't feel so-

"She's…doing the best she can." Blake's quiet reply made his heart clench. Yang was miserable. He wished he hadn't asked. He didn't listen to the rest of their conversation, Ruby cheering on, Weiss getting coffee, something? He could only think about Yang, about his guilt.

So many times in his life, he'd been paralyzed by fear, guilt, shame, and other people  _always_ paid the price. Jaune shook his head, the doubt replaced with a grim conviction. As RWB walked away, and NPR retreated into their room, he walked up to the opposite doors…and turned right. His hand settling onto the handle of a door his scroll couldn't open once it was locked.

Yang looked up as he stepped inside, and hurriedly wiped at her face with her sleeves. She didn't want him to see her crying. 'Yang Xiao Long' wasn't supposed to cry.

"Hey," Jaune's voice was hoarse and low.

"Hi Pumpkin Pete," Yang called back to him, and she gave him a winning smile, her tear-streaked face somewhat ruining the normally bright grin.

"I-" God, how did he say this? Should he just find something else to talk about first, then work his way around to it? He couldn't think of anything, and the awkward silence wasn't exactly helping. "I know you didn't do it. Didn't mean to do it, I mean."

She laughed shakily and wiped at her face again, the puffy shoulder-sleeves stained by a large spot of tears on each side. "Don't exactly beat around the bush, do ya?"

Jaune winced. Yeah, he definitely could have handled that better. He slowly approached Yang as she looked back up at him, the springs squeaking as he settled onto one of the lower beds, Blake's, if he remembered right.

"And how do you 'know'?" Yang's voice could've been called mocking or accusatory, if it had more energy. Jaune saw the same tiredness in her face that he had seen in Ironwood's, a kind of heavy sadness that weighed down her whole body.

But Yang's question was more worrying than her mood: How  _did_ he know? "I don't, I guess." Jaune shrugged, and something tugged in his chest when Yang winced. "I couldn't prove it in court anyway, but I know you didn't  _want_ to, an-and I know that it wasn't 'nerves' or 'combat shakes' or something like that. Well, I don't think so."

Yang's tears continued to fall, but she wasn't sobbing, wasn't even crying really. She just kept wiping at her face. "Well, that makes one person? According to Ironwood and most of the world, I'm a crazy rage-monster, or something."

"Yeah, but not according to anyone who really knows you." Yang shrugged helplessly at his words. "Right?"

"I dunno." She mumbled glumly, she looked out the window at the setting sun, which had just started its descent towards the horizon. They had a few hours of daylight at most, before the second night of the finals began. Jaune stood and stepped over to the bed Yang rested on, sitting beside her.

He wasn't sure what she was comfortable with, what would or wouldn't be crossing boundaries, but he cautiously stretched an arm around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. Her frown disappeared into another shaky laugh, and she wiped at her eyes again, this time with her fingers. She leaned into Jaune's shoulder, raising one hand to gently squeeze his hand where it rested on her right shoulder.

"Thanks, man."

"Yeah. I know you better than all those idiots out there, and I don't think you're not some crazy girl or anything like that."

Yang laughed openly at that, before she turned to Jaune and crossed her eyes, wiggling her fingers at him. "Oh, but I am crazy. I stick flowers in boots and eat junk food and tell shit jokes. I'm bananas, lady killer."

Jaune chuckled, "Maybe we should put you on the menu for breakfast."

Yang's laugh faltered, and she looked at him, her eyes darting to the right, trying to think. "Wait, what?"

"Cause, you know, they serve bananas in the cafeteria…"

Yang snorted, and chuckled to herself, her breath a rapid little machine gun. "That was- ha ha! – so dumb!" She cackled and fell to the side, knocking Jaune on to the bed. His laughter joined hers, and the two of them laughed like loons until Yang finally caught her breath, and sat up, Jaune following suit.

"Thanks Pumpkin Pete." She pulled him into a hug, her arms squeezing his opposite shoulder. "I know you tried to help. You're good people." She gave him a final squeeze before letting him go and sniffing heavily, her arm wiping at her face once again. "I think I need some time to think, though, if that's alright."

Jaune nodded and stood, patting her arm awkwardly, but she smiled nonetheless. "See you."

"Yeah, seeya." Yang was still smiling softly when Jaune reached the door and stepped outside.

He wanted to help. It felt like a tugging sensation in his chest. A  _need_ to fix whatever had happened to Yang, whatever had resulted in her attacking Mercury like that. Ruby had once told him about responsibility, where if you had the power to help someone, you  _had_ to use it. When he'd asked why, she'd just shrugged a small shoulder and said "It's what we do."

The fact that he  _might_ be able to help her, but that he was choosing not to disgusted him. It was like the fiasco with Cardin, all over again; choosing his own safety, happiness, future, career over the same things for his friends. But…was he?

He shoved his hands in his hoodie pocket, his 'koala pouch', as Nora had once called it, and stepped ponderously to the side, brushing past a tall, dark-haired guy in a red cape.

If he really wanted to help Yang, would telling anyone actually do anything? Telling Ironwood, Ozpin, Oobleck, or anyone else that he could read minds would do one of two things: they'd think he was crazy, and he'd be locked up as soon as the festival was over so he didn't hurt anyone, OR they'd believe him, and he'd be locked up  _immediately,_ so that he couldn't tell anyone various state secrets.

His scowl shifted on his face in consternation. Neither of those options looked like it led to Ironwood releasing a statement reinstating Yang in the finals. And even if the teachers did believe him,  _and_ didn't lock him up, what would they be able to do? They could release all the statements they wanted, but the world had already come to its own conclusions, and no retractions would be able to change tha-

"Thank you." Jaune started, his circular worry broken as he looked up. A familiar black bow and golden eyes looked up at him, blinking owlishly. Blake shifted from one foot to the other, her eyes darting around them, occasionally meeting his own before continuing their chase around him.

"What?"

"Thank you." She said again, and she held his gaze for a slightly longer moment. Then the contact was broken, and she glanced behind him.

"Uh, yeah, I guess. Yang's my friend."

Blake smiled ruefully, and muttered, "Mine too." Jaune had a feeling he was missing something, but knew that if Blake wanted him to know, she would tell him.

Before he could say anything more, Blake stepped forward, and wrapped her arms around him, giving him a soft squeeze and then breaking away before he could return the hug.

"None of us really knew what to do. We're her team, but that's a certain amount of distrust that comes from people you know really well. You think they might lie to you, to spare your feelings. But with someone who's a stranger-" Jaune pouted, his mouth quirked to one side in faux-hurt. Blake chuckled, "- _more_  of a stranger, that doubt isn't as strong, I guess."

"Guess?"

Blake shrugged. "I don't know for certain. Maybe Yang likes reassurances from boys better, or trusts people who look like her dad. Guesswork is the best I can do. I can't exactly read minds."

Jaune stiffened, before laughing and scratching at the back of his head. "Y-yeah, that'd make things easier, I guess."

"Guess?" Blake smiled coyly, and he chuckled nervously again.

"Yeah, I can't exactly read minds either."

Blake rolled her eyes before stepping forward again, pulling Jaune into a brief, soft hug, then releasing him and walking down the hallway towards her dorm.

"Thanks again. I'll see you later."

"Yeah, see ya." Jaune raised a hand in farewell, before it dropped again. As if today couldn't get more confusing and exhausting.

It had gotten both more confusing, and more exhausting. Jaune was bruised, battered, and he couldn't feel most of his left arm.

Pyrrha, the girl in the case, Pyrrha, Cinder, Pyrrha, Ozpin, Pyrrha, Pyrrha, Pyrrha… He wiped at his eyes as the tears came again, and something his wrist creaked in protest at ever having to move again. He could read minds, supposedly help people with their problems, but by the time he'd realized anything was wrong with her, she'd run away, and he hadn't even thought to check her mind.

And now it was too late. His throat felt hoarse, and he could still remember why.

" _Weiss! Please, you have to stop her! Don't worry about me! Please, you have to save Pyrrha."_

"Please…" A few streams of tears trickled past his palms and down his wrists, and his eyes felt numb from rubbing, but his body was all cried-out. He was too exhausted to feel the shock anymore.

He lifted his red eyes only to see someone else, who'd cried just as much as him.

Blake stood maybe 20 feet away, Sun and Yang sprawled out on the ground in front of her, and unlike him, she had plenty more tears to cry. They were all waiting at the Vale air docks, for the next ships to return from Beacon. There'd been a flash of light from the tower, and Ruby's uncle had commandeered one of the bullheads to fly up and retrieve any remaining survivors.

Ren and Nora were a few feet to his left, leaning against the destroyed remains of a souvenir shop. Sun had said that the rest of his team were at one of the hospitals, though he hadn't said if they were volunteers or patients.

Sun himself was on his side next to Yang, having fallen asleep. The adrenaline crash had hit all of them pretty hard. Jaune idly noticed that Sun's tail was curled around his body.  _'Kinda like a cat.'_

Jaune's chuckle died in his throat when his eyes drifted to the next figure on the ground. Yang…

Yang's arm was gone. Shored off just above her right elbow, with a blood-soaked bandage concealing the stump. Though Jaune's body had trouble processing the shock, that didn't mean he could think of anything to do or say. How could you comfort someone in a situation like that?

He looked down to the cracked concrete between his knees as his thoughts turned to the people who  _weren't_ here. Weiss, Ruby, and…

She'd be fine. Pyrrha was a terror on the battlefield, a four-time champion. Probably more; she didn't like to talk about her own accomplishments. Pyrrha could handle anything that Cinder threw at her, and throw it right back. She was strong like tha-

The faint whirring that he had initially dismissed as a bug grew louder into the recognizable thrum of the bullhead. He and Blake, the only two people currently conscious, turned to look.

Ruby's uncle stood next to Weiss in the main section of the bullhead, Ruby herself cradled in his arms like a little kid. Jaune's heart turned cold before he thought  _'She's probably just injured, and lying down in the back. Cinder must have been pretty strong to pull off something like this. Pyrrha's fine, she'll recover.'_

"Blake?" Sun's voice carried across the eerie quiet, and Jaune turned to see as the faunus stirred, propping himself up on his arms. Blake was walking quickly away from them all, her matted hair swaying from side to side. Sun reached out to her for a moment before collapsing back onto the ground, asleep before he even hit the dirt.

As Jaune watched Blake go, he didn't even think as he idly switched on his 'gift'.

' _It's all my fault…it's all my fault…'_ The mantra went on and on, and he never thought he'd ever hear a person sob in their own head.

The bullhead touched down, and Jaune pushed himself up, his knees clicking in displeasure, but his battered body could wait. He had to see Pyrrha for himself, make sure she was…

He'd half started to jog, but froze when he finally came to Ruby's uncle. He half-smiled at the grizzled man, and gestured back to the bullhead. "How's she doing?"

He looked very old and very tired as he watched Jaune. Jaune turned to Weiss, "I knew you could do-"

Weiss wasn't looking at him. She  _couldn't_ look at him. Jaune's smile grew brittle, desperate, as he turned back to the huntsman. "Where's…?"

Ruby's uncle sighed, and shifted his niece in his arms, his eyes going to the ground just like Weiss'.

"I'm sorry."

Jaune thought he would've been numb to the sorrow by now.

' _It's all my fault…It's all my fault…'_

It  _was_ all her fault. Yang, Ruby, Pyrrha, the White Fang, Cinder, all of it. It was all because of her, through Adam. She'd been a fool, a downright idiot. Start a new life? Fight for equality? She would've laughed, if misery hadn't been smothering her like a clinging fog.

She'd always known that Adam was determined. His commitment to the cause was part of what had led to him being promoted through the ranks of the early White Fang so quickly. "A hard worker", her father had once called him. Driven, but without dangerous ambition, and he'd been right in the end. Adam wasn't ambitious, but he was obsessed. Obsessed with retribution against the humans, and obsessed with her.

Wherever Blake went, misery was sure to follow.

As she jogged down the dilapidated streets of Vale, her mind was racing. Where could she go? She wanted to help, but there was nowhere that was safe from Adam, nowhere where he couldn't hunt her down and destroyed everything she cared abo-

"Blake!"

She stopped, chills raking her body despite the unseasonably warm autumn evening. Why was it always the blonds? She turned slowly, releasing her instinctive grip on Gambol.

Jaune stood at the end of a nearby alleyway, his breath coming in gasps, but his face… She'd once compared Jaune to a teddy bear. In a school so full of dangerous combatants, he'd seemed soft and comforting, but now…he looked positively murderous.

He stalked towards her, and while Blake was relatively certain she could either disable him or get away, what was more frightening was  _why_ he would be so furious. As he got closer, she saw tear tracks down his face, far more fresh than when she'd last seen him. Her heart sank. Pyrrha hadn't…

He stopped about ten feet away from her, his eyes boring into her like a bottomless ocean that could swallow her up at any second.

"Where are you going?"

Blake wasn't exactly sure how to answer. She'd hadn't figured that out herself, yet. However, even if the destination was unclear, the direction was not. "Somewhere else."

"Why?" Jaune hadn't even waited for her answer to finish. He'd expected it, he'd already known.

Blake looked at the crumbling buildings around them, at the few bodies that the rescue teams hadn't bothered to recover, before finally looking at Jaune. "So this doesn't happen again."

Jaune turned from her, furious, as if his incredulity had spun him around from its sheer force. "What?!"

"This is all-"

"This is  _not_ your fault!" Jaune's voice dwarfed hers, in magnitude and emotion. He'd whirled on her and extended a shaking finger, but not in accusation. "How could you even think-?! Argh!"

He stepped toward her then turned and stepped away, running a hand through his hair. He turned back, pinning her in place with his gaze before gesturing around at the ruins of Vale. "This isn't your fault…but if you leave,  _that_ will be. How could you do this to Yang, to your team?"

"It's to keep them safe!" It was Blake's turn to shout, to scream at him. Her breathing was heaving now, and she could no longer keep her own frustration locked away. "Adam won't ever stop. He'll find me again and again, and he'll destroy anything between himself and me!"

"Bullshit!" They were screaming at each other now, their voices reverberating off the skeleton of the city.

Jaune turned away again, clutching at his head as if he could hold his frustration inside. When he spoke again, his voice was a choked whisper. "You think you're being selfless, but you're not."

"What?"

"You're hiding." Jaune's face was a grim half-smile as he turned back to her. "The guilt is chewing you up inside, and you think being around them will make it worse."

He stepped closer, Blake stepping back, as if his words were physical spears that could wound her. "We're stronger with our friends, Blake. Pushing them away hurts them and yourself. After everything Yang has been through, you really think that abandoning her will help her?!"

"Stop it! I'm not-!"

"That's exactly what you're doing!" Blake's back hit a wall, and she cursed to herself as Jaune started making ground on her, until they were face to face. "My partner is dead! And you're just…throwing yours away?!"

Jaune's voice lowered, and his expression softened, a mix between pitying and pleading. "Your team needs you Blake. Yang needs you, I-" He broke off, and looked back towards the direction they'd both come from.

Blake's mind was racing. She thought back to last semester, her obsession with Torchwick, the dance, the conversations they'd had, Jaune comforting Yang, everything her friends had done for her. Jaune's expression broke her heart.

Jaune sighed and turned back to face her. "You can ma- Mmph!" She grasped his face, and pulled him close…and kissed him.

Her heart twisted when Jaune pulled away, but then soared just as high when his arms settled around her waist and pulled her back in. They were both filthy, tired, sore, and smelled disgusting, but for now, they felt happy. As happy as they could, given the circumstances.

They parted, sharing breath as well as space when they stayed so close together. Jaune idly caught a lock of hair in his fingers as he said, "We need you Blake. Please…don't push us out."

She looked up at him, glancing back toward the direction she knew her team, her friends to be.

…

"Okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I am so beyond unhappy with this. I've been working on this commission for the last three months, and I haven't touched it for the last two. I can barely string two clauses together with a direct object apiece, but despite how shit I know this is, I have to get it out. It's been like pulling teeth, but now that this is out of the way, I can move on to the next...three...oh god.
> 
> I'm not charging the client for this. Normally I charge half up front and half after, but I'm not doing the second half when this thing has taken three goddamn months. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if the next two or three commissioners decide they'd rather not wait.
> 
> This story also commits a cardinal sin that I absolutely hate in all fanfiction, but especially in fics focused on Jaune: romance without development. Blake goes from friends with Jaune to smooching him for no real reason, and I am so beyond frustrated and disappointed with himself, but as I said: I needed to get this out, otherwise I would just go on putting it off, getting distracted, etc. If I ever get my shit together, I might come back and rewrite this with a little more development, but for now: Yes, I know the romance comes out of nowhere and makes no sense. Trust me. I know.
> 
> So, some notes on this actual story: when I was first planning this out, Yang gives Jaune a kiss on the cheek, and is mildly interested in him herself. It ended with Jaune and Blake sleeping together, and Yang finding them the next morning, disappointed that Jaune was taken but overjoyed that he stopped Blake from leaving.
> 
> The second major difference between my planning and this first draft is a missing scene. Originally, I had Blake find Jaune after the 'Destiny' talk with Pyrrha, where she hadoukened him against the wall. Blake likens Pyrrha's odd behavior to Adam's shift in personality as the White Fang grew more militant, much like she was apprehensive about trusting Yang after Yang was disqualified. So, basically that conversation with Yang, but about Pyrrha, and to Jaune. I decided in the end that there wasn't time, since this fic was originally supposed to only be 3k words, and ended up at 5k despite all of that.
> 
> The next commission is some platonic (maybe budding romance but maybe not) Dragonslayer, set post V4, but completely deviating from V5 because, well...I planned it out before learning that Yang wasn't actually heading to Haven like I assumed, and was instead hunting down her mother. Seriously, I could've sworn she turned right, which is the opposite direction of the bandit's sign. gdi, CRWBY, what are you doing to me.


End file.
